Text messaging, and other short message service communications between users of mobile communications devices, has become increasingly popular. As the amount of time subscribers spend communicating using their mobile communication devices increases, a new avenue has been opened for advertisers and sponsors to reach potential customers.
The recent trend in non-mobile based electronic communication such as electronic mail and chat rooms is to provide free or reduced-rate applications and services to subscribers, while recouping the cost of providing such services through advertising and sponsorship. While such models have met with some degree of success in the arena of non-mobile based electronic communications, there exists certain limitations in applying the general model to mobile communications devices. Instead, mobile communications companies have traditionally offer to their subscribers a predetermined number of free minutes per month that may be managed through the use of subscriber free account balances. In such a system, a subscriber may be authorized to use a predetermined number of minutes or a predetermined monetary value of services. Accordingly, the need exists to adapt such a model to a mobile communications platform which accommodates pay for promotion advertising similar to that in non-mobile electronic communications platforms. Furthermore, a need exists for methods and systems by which advertisers can better control, monitor and target the content, scope and recipients of their promotions.
The present invention is provided to solve the problems discussed above and other problems, and to provide advantages and aspects not previously provided. A full discussion of the features and advantages of the present invention is deferred to the following detailed description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings.